› added 4 years ago

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TIL the Gell-Mann Amnesia Effect, where experts will notice all the stupid errors in a news article but still treat the next article as 100% accurate, was invented by the author Michael Crichton who named it after the famous physicist he was talking to at the time to make it sound more scientific.

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yVM7e TIL that dolphins are known to engage in non-reproductive sexual behavior, including masturbation, genital stimulation with flippers or rostrums, and even homosexual contact.
R5K56 TIL: Medieval feasts generally had no forks and guests uses their hands a knife to eat. Retainers would bring fresh bowls of water and towels. Dishes were made for pairs and the lesser of the two did cutting. Children also drank beer weak in alcohol content as water was less clean than beer.
Eg550 TIL that during World War 1, Belgian pilot Willy Coppens came under fire from an enemy observation ballon during an attack run. In response he landed his plane on top of the ballon and turned off his engine. When the ballon descended he slid off and flew away.
XpJQ TIL that the New York Times Bestseller list is editorial content. The editors choose which books are “bestsellers.”
XEQwr TIL Napoleon had a healthy obsession with Australia his whole life. Had he won at Waterloo he intended to name part of Australia “Terre Napoléon” (Napoleon Land) and brought back 200+ species of Australian flora and fauna to France, making Josephiné the first person in history to breed black swans.